In what sounds like Texas' version of SB 1070, that state's peace officers will be allowed to inquire about the immigration
status of any person arrested or legally detained under legislation
passed by the Texas Senate early Wednesday morning.

The body voted
to pass the special session version of the sanctuary cities bill out of
the upper chamber along a party line vote, 19 to 12, after roughly six
hours of debate.

The bill, SB 9 by state Sen. Tommy Williams,
R-The Woodlands, would deny state funds to entities that prohibit peace
officers and employees of special districts from inquiring into the
status of a person arrested or detained for the investigation of crime.
It also expands the federal government’s Secure Communities initiative
to all detention facilities, and codifies tighter regulations for
applicants for driver’s licenses and state-issued IDs. Gov. Rick Perry added the measure to the special session agenda last week.

Williams
fought off repeated accusations that his bill is a blatant attempt to
empower local law enforcement to act as immigration officers and deport
illegal immigrants. He said there is no provision in the law that
requires or allows them to do so. Instead, he said it was a necessary
measure to identify criminal aliens intent on harming Texans, especially
as the violence in Mexico continues unabated.

“If during the
course of whatever criminal or traffic (offense), whatever they are
investigating, they come to the belief that that person is in the
country illegally, this bill gives them the discretion (to determine
what to do),” he said during the debate.

The
sticking point for opponents, however, is that the “discretion” allows
officers to contact federal authorities — who do have the authority to
deport someone — even if an officer detained the person in question
without the intent of making an arrest.

The debate resurrected the
concerns Democrats, major city police chiefs and county sheriffs have
that the bill would deter witnesses or victims of crimes from stepping
forward.

Several law enforcement officers testified the bill would
not only erode the success of what they labeled “community policing,”
but also cost most of them millions more annually to detain immigrants
and train officers.

An amendment by state Sen. José Rodríguez,
D-El Paso, that would have excluded witnesses or victims of crime from
being subjected to the inquiry failed on a party line vote. An amendment
by Sen. Carlos Uresti,
D-San Antonio, that would have excluded children 17 years or younger
and victims of crimes, including sex or trafficking crimes, also failed.

Williams said the amendments would have the unintended consequences of
possibly prohibiting the federal government from issuing the victims of T
or U visas, which are given to immigrant victims of sex or trafficking
crimes who agree to cooperate with law enforcement. The votes fueled
Democrats’ speculation that the bill was not just an attempt to rid the
state of criminal aliens, which Williams said was the bill’s intent
during his opening remarks.

Williams, however, routinely dismissed
claims that the bill would erode trust in law enforcement when he
pointed to testimony Monday by a woman who said she cooperated with
police officers when her abusive partner constantly badgered her and her
daughter. The witness said she initially gave in to her fears and
called the police, but testified that she would have been scared to do
so if SB 9 was in place, for fear of being deported.

“What she said yesterday exemplifies what is going to happen,” said Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth. “They are going to fear calling the police.”

Williams
said the witness was confused and said she was already afraid of law
enforcement before SB 9 was even considered. He added that he didn’t
share Davis’ concern that his legislation would lead to greater fear.

There
was also a rehash of what “lawfully detained” means as it is stated in
the bill. Davis referenced testimony offered Monday from Shannon
Edmonds, the director of governmental affairs for the Texas District and
County Attorneys Association, who testified as a resource witness that
the term is ambiguous at best.

During questioning from Uresti,
Williams was asked if being “detained during the investigation of a
crime” meant any crime committed at any time. Williams said that
definition would be applicable under the bill. Davis then attempted to
amend the bill to require that officers first establish probable cause
before a subject could be detained. It also failed on a party line vote.

Democrats may consider it a minor victory that Williams accepted an amendment by Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa,
D-McAllen, that would adopt current policies practiced by the Texas
Department of Public Safety that would prevent an officer from stopping a
vehicle or searching a business or residence for the exclusive purpose
of enforcing immigration laws unless they are providing assistance to a
federal agency. The amendment also would prevent an officer from
arresting, without a warrant, a person solely because she or he was
thought to be in Texas illegally.

The current bill excludes public
school, junior college and hospital districts. The original bill
included campus peace officers, which led many to fear the provision
would lead to lawsuits from persons alleging they were being denied
access to an education, which is required by the state and federal
constitutions. They also feared the bill would discourage immigrants
from obtaining proper medical care.

The bill also includes a
provision by which a citizen living in the jurisdiction of an affected
entity may file a complaint with the Texas attorney general if they
believe the entity is in violation of the law. An amendment by state
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte,
D-San Antonio, would have allowed a citizen to file a complaint against
an officer or other employee if the person was alleged to have engaged
in racial profiling. Williams said he was thankful Van de Putte brought
the matter to his attention, but said he preferred to have the attorney
general consider the matter before adopting the language. The amendment
was tabled following another party line vote.

The final vote came
after Democrats showed their respect to Williams for doing what he
thought was right. But they also issued a passionate plea to Republican
lawmakers to stop and think about what the law meant for anyone in
Texas, legal or illegal, that was not an Anglo.

“I can’t think of
another piece of legislation that I believe will be judged to be so
unfair and so inequitable as this piece of legislation,” said state Sen.
John Whitmire,
D-Houston. “We must slow down, members. It’s our moral duty to stand up
against discrimination. We’re fixing to impact every Hispanic citizen
in the state of Texas.”

Whitmire then asked the Hispanic members
of the Senate to stand so he could "put a face" on what the bill would
mean for Texans of Hispanic descent. Meanwhile, a protester in the
gallery walked with a sign that simply read "Shame." He was quickly
removed from the gallery by DPS officers.

The bill now moves to
the Texas House, where HB 12, the sanctuary cities legislation during
the regular session, sailed out of the lower chamber. State Rep. Burt Solomons,
R-Carrollton, authored that legislation but said today he was not sure
whether he would carry SB 9 during the special session. The driver’s
license and Secure Communities provisions, he said, could send the bill
to the Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety. Solomons also
said the bill could get voted out of committee as soon as this week. He
was unsure whether there would be another opportunity for public
testimony at that time.

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